<p>A school like Princeton.
I’ve been casually involved with piano since the 3rd grade or so.
I’m reasonably talented, not prodigious, not even remotely close to Juilliard level, but I’m experienced. </p>
<p>What sorts of things could I do to (like I said) make a school like Princeton care about this commitment?
What level of performance would be notable enough (I’m very shy at this point, performing is something I’ve never liked)?
Would giving free lessons to the underprivileged be something?</p>
<p>What makes my response so different than other kids looking for ways to use their talent?
I suggested it because it seemed like a rewarding way to use my talent and to not have it go to waste for the admission process, because at this site I’m learning that doing things I love isn’t enough.
Thanks for your judgmental and rude response.</p>
<p>You must define yourself accordingly or risk getting lost in a sea of amazing applicants.</p>
<p>^Just to pull something you said from another thread. Believe me, my motives aren’t as sinister as you think.
Sorry for any selfishness evident in earlier postings.</p>
<p>Hey, hey. Chill guys. I know the feeling; it was only a year and a half ago for me. I know that it feels like you’ve done everything, but you must do more. My advice: places like college confidential is amazing if you want to feel like you’re getting some inside info and make yourself feel good. However, if you’re here, chances are you already know EVERYTHING that you need to know. Thus, you are the best judge of what would increase your chances of admission. Well, you probably know this, too, and you’re thinking “Yeah, but that doesn’t help.” Now, if you want some reassurance, which I certainly did a year and a half ago, I think the piano idea is wonderful. I believe it would be even better if you devote yourself to it enough to turn it into an heartfelt essay. Wouldn’t you say you knew this, too? :-P</p>
<p>I’m sorry to sound so…pretentious. I really do think that the piano idea is great.</p>
<p>Thanks for your response. You don’t sound pretentious at all.
I agree with most of what you’ve said. I still haven’t decided what, if anything I want to do. I’ll try some things, see what seems right for me to be doing/see what clicks. That’s what’s most important. I still have a while before I start applying to colleges.
So I guess I consider this topic closed unless someone else has something important to add, otherwise, I think Orbit_J gave the best response possible.</p>
<p>You don’t necessarily have to give free lessons to show your dedication to Princeton. The best thing you can do is to send a recording of your playing and get evaluated very highly by their music staff.</p>
<p>There are other ways enjoy piano besides performing…invite a couple friends over who play strings or other instuments for regular jam sessions doing trio’s, quartets…you’ve started your own chamber music group. A friends daughter learned a couple pieces and accompanied try-outs for the school musical. She also played for little kid’s sunday school. Free music lesson - piano lessons, or accompany voice… for disadvantaged or disabled students is a GREAT idea. What counts here SilverD…is that you can take initiative or start something…colleges love it…and by the way…YOU WILL LEARN ALOT from it yourself. Colleges loved that my D helped coach swimming for special olympics, but the real magic is that she loved it and became a more sensitive advocate.</p>
<p>There are quite a few extremely gifted piano players in the applicant pool.
This is not something that will be able to give you your edge.<br>
I sincerely suggest that you look elsewhere if you are looking to define your application. Don’t downplay it, but don’t focus on it either.</p>
<p>I was in the same boat as you. I had played the piano since 3rd grade and was good but not great at it (and I stopped actively taking lessons after 10th.)</p>
<p>List it - being good at an instrument is a good “prerequisite” to have. Not having played an instrument is much worse than having the admisisons office knowing that you’ve been exposed to music over a long period of time.</p>
<p>I agree with Cibbir. Although it might seem on CC that everybody has played the piano since before they could walk and has won a multitude of awards, the truth is that even if you just list it you’re at least marginally distinguishing yourself.</p>
<p>I skipped most of the responses after the rude one, so maybe what I have to say already has been said. What I did read overlooks the goldmine your piano experience provides.</p>
<p>One thing you can do is mention in your essay what you learned from studying piano. Talk about, for example, how the sense of meter and rhythm that was imparted at an early age later afforded you special insight into those aspects of poetry and prose and enhanced your appreciation of same, maybe causing you to read writings otherwise you might have ignored; how learning music theory helped you with math (and maybe understanding the nature of temporal & spatial relationships generally); how you learned that perseverance–sticking with it on pieces you were sure you’d never master–pays off, and how you’ve been able to apply that important lesson to all the difficult things you’ve since encountered and how it’s made you a better, more confident person; how learning and playing classical music taught you the importance of antecedents/history, influences, the ways in which hybrids and innovations come into being, both in music and in other areas. Talk about the gratifying surprises that came your way as a result studying piano. And so on.</p>
<p>You get the idea. Having studied piano for years, even if you’re not terribly accomplished, can still have given you important personal lessons that have made you a better person, made you more inquisitive, and given you insight into yourself and into life which otherwise you’d be without.</p>